Nuclear moratoriums crumble around the world
The recent surge in positive sentiment about nuclear as the most viable answer to global energy needs and decarbonization goals has found governments around the world taking steps to reverse course on decades-old bans, moratoriums, and restrictions on new nuclear development.
Across Europe, North America, and Asia, these reversals make it clear that growing public support and extensive talk about the new nuclear renaissance is promoting concrete, substantive change in critical energy policies.
Belgium: By an impressive margin (102 votes in favor, 8 against, and 31 abstentions), Belgium’s parliament officially voted this month to scrap its 22-year-old pledge to phase out nuclear power and instead revive the country’s nuclear industry.
Currently, there are five operating nuclear reactors rated for a total capacity of 3,908 MWe across two power plants in Belgium. In total, nuclear power accounts for 18.3 percent of the country’s energy mix, according to the IEA.
About the decision, Energy Minister Mathieu Bihet said, “This is not just an energy reform; it is a decisive step for the economic, environmental, and strategic future of our country.”
Taiwan: Taiwan’s previous president, Ing-wen Tsai, had campaigned fiercely on a platform of making Taiwan a “nuclear-free homeland” by 2025. After she was elected in 2016, Tsai amended the Taiwan Electricity Act to mandate that Taiwan’s three nuclear power plants had to close after their 40-year licenses expired, and a decommissioning fund was created for those shutdowns. Those plans were fully realized last Saturday when the shuttering of Maanshan-2, Taiwan’s final reactor, commenced.
However, Taiwan’s new president, Ching-te Lai, voiced an early openness to a nuclear revival on the campaign trail, and Taiwan is now amid reversing course on its nuclear policy. Just a few days before Maanshan-2’s shutdown began, lawmakers revised the law to allow for license renewals of closed plants. Critically, these renewals can be applied even after plants have been shut down.
Bolstering plans even further, Taiwan’s National Atomic Research Institute launched a $3.3 million, four-year small modular reactor research project to provide resources for industry and government for future SMR development.
Denmark: Lars Aagaard, Denmark’s minister of climate and energy, has announced that the Danish government will conduct a yearlong analysis of the potential benefits of new nuclear power construction in the country, opening the door to a potential rescindment on the country’s 40-year prohibition on nuclear power.
Germany: After abandoning a nuclear sector made up of no fewer than 30 power-producing reactors and officially closing its last plant in 2023, Germany took center stage as a strongly antinuclear country and significant opponent to Europe’s nuclear leader, France.
The first sign that the country would get caught up in the new nuclear wave came in March, when the German state of Hesse signed an MOU with Focused Energy, the European Investment Bank, and eight other industry partners to support the development of a first-of-a-kind nuclear fusion plant at the decommissioned Biblis nuclear fission plant.
This action foreshadowed a critical development that came to light last Sunday when the Financial Times reported that Germany has officially dropped its long-standing opposition to nuclear power, as it is now being considered among renewables for green energy EU legislation. This roadblock-clearing is set to have positive implications for nuclear’s future in the EU.
According to the Financial Times, Chancellor Friedrich Merz also criticized former Chancellor Olaf Scholz for shutting down Germany’s last three nuclear plants and vowed to invest in SMRs and fusion technology.
Other developments: Looking below nation-level news, there also were important nuclear developments last week in Massachusetts and in Nova Scotia. In Massachusetts, Gov. Maura Healy announced new legislation that would scrap a requirement for new nuclear construction to be approved by a statewide ballot initiative; such a repeal would remove a significant hurdle from such construction. Fourteen states had similar requirements for nuclear construction at one point; Massachusetts would join a list of eight states that have since repealed those requirements.
And, after Nova Scotia repealed its moratorium on uranium mining in March, the province added uranium to its critical minerals list and issued a request for proposals from individuals and companies that seek to explore new mining opportunities.
